The present invention relates to an optical connector and a method of assembling the optical connector.
Parallel-multi-plug optical connectors in which plural optical connector plugs are connected together in parallel so as to be usable as a multi-core connector plug are known (refer to JP-A-2011-27876, for example).
In a parallel-multi-plug optical connector shown in FIG. 14, plural ferrules 505 to be connected to two or more optical cables that lead from a stop ring (not shown; located behind a rear case unit 503) can be contained in parallel in a single case 501 via respective springs 507. The case 501 includes a front case unit 511 having plural front insertion holes 509 in which front end portions of ferrules 505 are inserted, respectively, and the rear case unit 503 having plural rear insertion holes 513 in which rear end portions of the ferrules 505 are inserted together with the springs 507, respectively. The front case unit 511 and the rear case unit 503 are formed so as to be able to be combined with and fixed to each other.
The case 501 is assembled so that a ferrule 505, a ferrule holder 515, a tube 517, and a spring 507 are placed in each hole that is a connection of a front insertion hole 509 of the front case unit 511 and a rear insertion hole 513 of the rear case unit 503.
This parallel-multi-plug optical connector can serve as a multi-core connector plug though it is simple in structure.
However, the parallel-multi-plug optical connector in which the plural ferrules 505 to be connected to optical cables are contained, together with the springs 507, in the case 501 which is composed of the front case unit 511 and the rear case unit 503 has a problem that because of presence of a large number of advance insertion components such as the springs 507 and rear case unit 503 the termination workability is low. Furthermore, before being contained in the front insertion holes 509 and the rear insertion holes 513, the ferrules 505 which are not supported and are merely in contact with tip portions of the springs 507, respectively. Therefore, the ferrules 505 tend to shake and hence it is difficult to insert the two fibers (cores) into the respective front insertion holes 509 of the front case unit 511 simultaneously. This raises another problem of low assembling efficiency.